


Teammates in Arms

by LePapillonRose



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Gen, Happy birthday Kise!, Kise deserves so much love, Platonic Relationships, a belated fic for Kise's bday, also I love Kaijou and its relationships, post Touou match
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 10:14:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14975012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LePapillonRose/pseuds/LePapillonRose
Summary: He knows why he wants to win with this team. Alternatively, Kise has a rough day and his team has his back.





	Teammates in Arms

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! It's been a long time since I posted anything, but I can assure you that I've been writing a lot behind the scenes - I just need to get better at finishing and publishing things. This isn't my best work, but I really wanted to write something cute and fluffy for Kise's birthday because I love him to bits and pieces (I also love Kaijou to bits and pieces, so this was just a win-win for me~). I hope you guys like it regardless!
> 
> P.S.: I was struggling to show Hayakawa's speech impediment so I just decided to leave it out.

Kise stumbles into the locker room feeling like he has careened down several flights of stairs while sleepwalking—sore, feeble, and exhausted. His normal sleep schedule had been ruined by a late but important shoot the previous night, he hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch thanks to fans excitedly crowding him about said shoot, and he’d spent the entire day dozing through classes and being scolded by teachers. He’s been looking forward to practice all day; at the very least, he thinks, he has basketball to take his mind off things.

But, because fate hasn’t finished dealing him a poor hand, Kise’s bad ankle is smarting by the time scrimmages begin. Frustrated, he forces himself through the pain to throw down a dunk, but once he lands, his vision blacks out and his entire foot feels as if it's on fire. When he comes to, he tries to play it off as if he needs to tie his shoe, but Kasamatsu is too quick for that. The captain calls a hasty timeout, approaching Kise with a somber expression that he can’t look at for fear of what else it might contain.

“Kise, is it your ankle?” Kasamatsu doesn’t sound angry or disappointed, but his words are still daggers to Kise’s chest. _Your ankle._ The cursed liability that only serves as a constant nagging reminder of his failures. “We shouldn’t take any risks, so just—”

“I’m fine!” Kise insists, flashing the biggest, brightest smile he can muster as he tries to stand. “Let’s just keep playing!”

Kasamatsu sees through the façade, just as he always does. “Not like this we aren’t.” He slings Kise’s arm around his shoulders to help lift him to his feet before turning to address the two other worried third years. “Moriyama, water! Kobori, get an ice pack!”

Try as he might, Kise can’t put any weight on his bad ankle to convince the older boy otherwise. He hops on one foot as Kasamatsu patiently guides him to the bench, his shoe squeaking against the court and drawing everyone’s attention. He grits his teeth and bows his head in shame—what kind of ace is he, letting down his team even in practice? 

“Here’s… oh, crap.” Moriyama immediately sets the water bottle down, panicked by Kise’s overbright eyes. “Hey, are you—”

“Don’t cry, Kise!” Hayakawa exclaims, probably more loudly than he should, and offers his teammate a white towel. “Here!”

“That… probably has sweat on it.” Nakamura pushes up his glasses, regarding Kise with worry. “Maybe paper towels would be better?” Some of the players chime in at that, offering to run to the locker room to get some. 

“Guys, give him some space,” Kobori chides gently, kneeling to strap the ice pack around Kise’s ankle. The cold soothes the aching joint into numbness, but his heart still twists painfully, laden with guilt and regret. 

“Is it still hurting a lot?” Kasamatsu asks, alarmed by the rogue tears running down Kise’s cheeks. “We can get the nurse—”

Kise immediately shakes his head, rubbing the heels of his palms into his eyes. “N-no, it’s not that bad. It’s just…” He stares at his ankle rather than anyone else in the room, swallowing the lump in his throat. “I’m sorry I can’t practice.”

“Kise, this is out of your control,” Kobori responds kindly, reaching out to pat the top of his head. “You don’t need to apologize for anything.”

“Dammit,” Kasamatsu curses, upset at himself. “I knew I shouldn’t have let you start practicing so soon…”

“Alright, Captain, let’s not start another pity party,” Moriyama teases good-naturedly, placing his hands on Kasamatsu’s shoulders before looking at Kise. “Let’s just agree that no one is blaming anyone for anything, and that includes you, Kise.”

“We’ll all work extra hard!” Hayakawa assures Kise mostly comprehensibly, giving him a none too gentle clap on the shoulder. “That way, we’ll be even better when you come back!” The second and third string players all chorus in agreement. 

“You didn’t look too great during warmups. I can already tell you didn’t sleep, but…” Kasamatsu frowns, feeling Kise’s forehead with the back of his hand. “You’re clammy. Have you eaten?”

“Of course I—” Kise withers under the captain’s stern gaze, sheepishly fidgeting with the material of his shorts. “No… I didn’t have time…”

“I have some leftover rice balls from today, if you want them,” one of the second stringers, Sanada, pipes up, coming forward. “It’s not much, but…”

The mere mention of any food is enough to win Kise and his stomach over. “That would be great, Sanada-kun!” He flashes the fellow first year a grateful smile. “Thank you.”

Sanada grins, giving him a thumbs up. “No problem! Glad I can help.” 

“Don’t forget to drink this either,” Nakamura reminds him, handing him the water bottle Moriyama had brought earlier. 

“Well…” Kasamatsu heaves a sigh. “Food isn’t usually allowed in the gym, but since Coach isn’t here today and I know you won’t shut up if I force you to leave, you can eat in here.” He gives Kise a warning look. “Just don’t leave a mess, alright? You’re getting laps if I find even one grain of rice.”

“You can count on me!” Kise looks around at the whole group, warm from their kindness. He can’t keep the beam off his face, and if anyone notices that his eyes are watery again, they don’t mention it. “Thank you, everyone. I promise we’ll all play together again soon!”

“That’s what we like to hear.” Kasamatsu raises his voice, reclaiming authority. “Alright, back to practice! Same teams!”

“Yes, captain!” 

The rest of the players head for the courts, joined by Sanada once he gives the plastic-wrapped rice balls to Kise. Kasamatsu stays back for a few moments, surveying the gym to make sure everyone is in place—like a pride lion, Kise thinks, courageous yet compassionate. He can’t imagine the team without him, and now, he realizes he couldn’t be more grateful to have Kasamatsu as his captain.

“Thank you, Kasamatsu-senpai.”

Unexpectedly, Kasamatsu chuckles as he looks back at Kise. “It’s weird to hear you sound so sincere.”

“Hey!” Kise pouts, mostly theatrical but a little offended. “I really meant it!”

“I didn’t say it was a bad thing. It’s nice, honestly.” Kasamatsu ruffles Kise’s hair fondly. “Just take care of yourself, alright? And lean on us a little bit, too—being teammates means more than just passing to each other on the court.” 

“I didn’t get that at first, but I’m understanding it more and more now, senpai,” Kise replies honestly. “And I’m going to hold up my end of that, too.”

The corner of Kasamatsu’s mouth quirks into a small crooked smile. “Well, I look forward to seeing how you do it.”

It goes unspoken, but Kise already knows, and he’s fairly certain Kasamatsu does, too. He wants to win with this team—and he’s going to do anything in his power to accomplish it.

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully I'll see you all soon in a new fic! Feel free to leave kudos and comments~


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